For Sunday’s game against the Vikings, I and my wife decided to join up with Randy Earick or more commonly known around Cardinal Stadium as the Poonster. Randy and his sons, Tim and Chris, turnout at various locations around the valley for road games. They set up for a great time to watch the Cardinals and hang out with other Cardinal fans.

I featured this crew in an article a while back when I met them at the Cardinals draft party. I was deeply touched by the openness and friendly nature of these guys and it never fails that we have a great time. I also got to meet a Facebook friend and fellow Cardinal fan Kathy and her daughter Vicki there as well and we spent the morning talking about football, screaming at the TV but overall having a good time.

One of the many complaints I hear from fans is that to take him a live game costs a lot of money and in some respects that is true. But I

wanted to tell you that our experience with Randy and the boys along with Kathy and Vicki rang up a grand total of $11. We met at the Valle Luna Mexican restaurant on 35th Ave. and Bell in Phoenix. The Vikings game being a road game early the game started at 10 AM so there wasn’t a very large crowd when we got there at 9 AM. That gave us time to talk to Randy and his sons and grab some breakfast at the restaurant. Valle Luna had a great deal for breakfast and lunch, we had two eggs, two sausage links, two bacon strips and hash browns for $2.99, that’s right $2.99.

They also had some lunch specials ranging up to about $6.99 so depending on how many beers you slam down during a game you can get out of there fairly cheaply and enjoy a great time watching the game and hanging out with Cardinal fans. But I would also like to highlight some of the special opportunities that Randy and his OfficialTailgateGear.com has going for tailgating at the stadium.

So many people get to the Cardinals Stadium and look around at all the experienced tailgaters and wish they could put on something like that of their own. Anyone who’s taken on such a task knows that it’s quite an undertaking and don’t really know how to start but Randy has put together a website that can supply anyone exactly what they need for their tailgate experience. This covers a variety of things from fan paraphernalia to food and beverages so check out Randy’s website at http://officialtailgategear.net/ and see what all he has to offer.

Randy also puts together the tailgate of his own out in the Cardinal’s parking lot that involves a lot of food and drinks and invites anyone to come partake in it’s my understanding that he just asked for donation for this culinary experience. Check out one of the pictures below of what he is offering on a game by game basis. It is truly an extraordinary feast for any tailgaters that just reflect Randy and his boys love for the Cardinals and for their fellow Cardinal fans.

But this truly would not have been a party if my editor in chief Troy Hallawell and his wife Jamie didn’t show up for the game. It was my first chance to meet Jamie and she was very sweet, very friendly and looking forward to meeting everyone. I had the chance to hang out and watch a game with Troy myself in the preseason and had a good time but I am very impressed with this young man and his vision for Phoenix.org. Troy is very passionate about his love for the Phoenix area and his desire to assist those who may be coming to Phoenix for a visit or to move by offering a variety of community topics on the website. Troy is a fine young man and I look forward to a long and prosperous relationship with Phoenix.org.

The deeper I get into my Cardinal experience the more I realize that Phoenix is putting together a solid base of fans that the rest of the country should respect. I realize that people that live here in the Phoenix area and may be loyal fans to teams like Pittsburgh or Green Bay or Dallas, but I’m telling you straight up that you are missing out on what it’s like to be an Arizona Cardinals fan. The fans really break it down, especially those fans of the AFC, the only time loyalty is could be challenged is when the Cardinals and that AFC team meet in the Super Bowl, so why not support the Cardinals just until they get to that point to where they play your other team?

You’ll find as I have had these Cardinals fans and their devotion to the Cardinals deserves respect. I challenge any Steeler fans to come out to a Cardinals game and leave your Steeler jersey at home experience what the rest of us have found that there are good people here that love you have a good time so why not join us?

That’s my question from the cheap seats.

Let me know what you think of the article by leaving a comment below and as always I appreciate your continued support.